


It's All In The Blood

by Josephi



Category: RWBY
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-06
Updated: 2020-07-06
Packaged: 2021-03-04 20:40:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,569
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25102552
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Josephi/pseuds/Josephi
Summary: Everyone's always relying on their Aura to do the heavy lifting. Grimm attack? Aura! Fall down the stairs? Aura! 50. cal speeding towards your skull at speeds that you couldn't even comprehend? I'm not so sure about that, but sure! Well, say goodbye to your sweet security, because Death's blood is potent in more ways than you would think.
Kudos: 1





	It's All In The Blood

Onyx sat in the balcony chair while gazing out over the moon-lit city of Vale, the slight breeze causing his long black hair to sway. This was secretly his favorite part of the job, no matter what he said publicly. The silent peace, the beautiful moon, and the city lights that never truly went out. It was a sight to behold. He was brought out of his thoughts by his Scroll buzzing. He checked the message and it was from his colleague, Mason.

_ “He’ll be there any second now.”  _ It read. Onyx sighed as he remembered why he was there. He straightened the tie on his black suit, stood while picking up the briefcase sitting next to him, and walked over to the glass table. He set the case on the table and opened it, looking at its contents for a moment before removing them. As he began assembling the bolt-action sniper rifle, he got another message from Mason.

_ “Did you remember the bullet?”  _ Onyx rolled his eyes before replying.

_ “Stfu, like your dumbass is better.” _

_ “At least I’ve never forgotten key equipment.”  _ Onyx chuckled before tucking his Scroll away. He finished building the rifle and set it down on the table. It didn’t have a magazine because he wouldn’t need more than one bullet for this hit. Speaking of, he put his hand in his pocket and withdrew it, holding a single bullet that glowed a very faint red. He loaded it into the chamber of the rifle and propped it up on the balcony railing. He looked back out over the railing, the moonlight reflecting off his black skull mask. He didn’t really like the edgy look all that much, he would’ve left it at the suit, but Mason said that it combined with his medium build and black hair made him pretty intimidating, so he went along with it. After a minute, he saw someone walk out from behind a building at the other end of the street, casually strolling down the sidewalk while smoking a cigarette.

Onyx screwed on the suppressor and put his eye to the scope, then used the knob on the side to increase the magnification. He zoomed in on the guy's face and knew it was him. He was a rookie Huntsman that had just recently busted a drug lab over in Atlas, and whoever was in charge over there was pissed as hell. He had ordered the hit on the poor bastard, but nobody had taken it due to the whole Aura thing. Onyx checked the wind and compensated his aim for it. He took his final aim and pulled the trigger. The bullet punched right through the Huntsman’s Aura and skull, dropping him instantly.

Onyx immediately got to work disassembling the rifle and putting it back in the briefcase. While the suppressor made the gunshot much quieter than it would’ve been, it was still fairly loud, and he didn’t want to risk having the police called on him. After he finished packaging the weapon, he entered the hotel room attached. He took off his mask and hid it in his case as well before exiting out in the hallway in a feigned panic. As he speedwalked to the staircase, one of the other hotel stayers came out, looking genuinely panicked and very tired.

“Hey, do you know what the hell that was?” He asked with a drowsy tone.

“I dunno man, but I’m getting the fuck outta here. I looked out the window and saw some guy laying in the street with his brains blown out.” Onyx said with fake panic as he left. As he entered the lobby, he saw a woman, he recognized her as the woman from the front desk, looking out of a window with the police on call. He exited out of the back door while she was distracted. He walked through the dark hallway and exited the building out into the back alley, where a white van was waiting.

“Oh what the fuck.” Onyx said to himself. He opened up the driver side and sat inside. He looked into the back and saw Mason sitting there with his laptop. He was wearing his white suit, again, he didn’t understand Mason’s fashion sense, and looked at him.

“I’m guessing it went well?” Mason asked.

“You couldn’t have chosen a car that didn’t scream “registered sex offender”?” He retorted.

Mason started laughing. “Hey man, it was the best I could do on short notice.”

“You might as well have painted “Free Candy” on the side of the fucking thing.” Onyx replied, laughing a little himself. “When I looked back I half expected to see a tied up kid.”

“Oh don’t worry, that’s for later.” Mason said, causing Onyx to bust out laughing and start driving.

**The next morning**

Onyx walked out of the bathroom and into the main area of the apartment in a regular white shirt and black sweatpants. He walked past the couch, which Mason was currently passed out on, and into the kitchen. He opened the fridge, reaching past the sealed container marked “5.56”, and grabbed the milk, along with the cereal from the cabinet. He sat down at the table, made a bowl of cereal, and started eating while browsing through the news feed on his Scroll. Unsurprisingly, there were loads of articles talking about the murder of another Huntsman, the sixth death within as many months. A few of the articles even had pictures of the body.

“Maybe I should’ve used a 50 cal.” He said while snickering to himself. And, just as planned, nobody had any idea who did it. Mason had hacked into the hotel’s client database and wiped him from it, and the amnestic drug Onyx slipped into the lady’s water bottle ensured she didn’t remember ever meeting him. Everything had gone smoothly, as per (almost) every hit.

Onyx looked up as Mason walked into the kitchen, still in his suit as he’d been too tired to take it off before falling asleep. He still looked pretty tired, as a matter of fact.

“Mornin’.” He said while yawning.

“Mornin’. There’s still some milk in the fridge if you want some cereal.”

“Nah, I’ll just make some toast.”

“Alright.”

As Mason passed him, he remembered something.“Oh, what’s the expiration date on the blood?”

“I’ll check.” Onyx responded as he stood up and walked over to the fridge. He opened the door and took out the container from before as Mason got the bread from the cupboard. He set it on the countertop and checked the sticky note on the top.

“It expires today. I’ll do the thing.” He walked over to the knife drawer and pulled out a small, serrated blade. He walked back to the container and opened the lid. Inside, it was a quarter of the way filled with blood that glowed a very faint red, similar in intensity as the bullet from the previous night. He put his scarred hand out over the container and cut a line across his palm with the knife, letting fresh blood that glowed much brighter than the old stuff fall in. He winced only slightly as he had largely gotten used to the self-harm. The new blood mixed with the old blood, and seemed to energize it, the glow now intensifying to that of a freshly cracked glow stick. He left for the bathroom to get some gauze for the cut. Meanwhile, Mason got a message on his Scroll.

“The fuck? It’s way too early in the morning for this.” He set down the peanut butter he had just picked up and checked it, and saw it was from one of Junior’s lackeys, Militia, he remembered her name was. It was a simple message saying that Junior wanted Onyx to meet him at his club. Most likely for a job. It made sense that he would contact Death, as his skills had been instrumental in Junior’s rise in the criminal underworld. Eliminating rivals and other stuff like that. Mason pocketed his Scroll and walked over to the bathroom door, knocking on it and hearing the sound of running water.

“Yeah? I’m kinda busy in here.” He heard on the other side.

“Just got a message from one of the Malachites. Junior wants to meet you at his club.” Mason relayed.

“Wha- now?!” Onyx said, exasperated.

“I dunno man, she didn’t say anything else.”

“Fuck it.” Onyx said after a moment of silence. “I’ll go tonight. Sure as shit ain’t going now.” He muttered that last bit, but Mason still picked it up.

“Yeah, well, hurry up. I gotta take a shower, then I’m going to get some pizza for later.”

“John’s?”

“John’s.”

“Fuck yeah.”

**11:27 PM**

Onyx could practically feel the music as he pulled up to the club. The neon signs and such made it hard to miss, not that he would. He exited his unremarkable black car and approached the door, and the bouncer recognized him. He nodded while opening the door. Onyx walked in and was immediately blasted by the electric music. It annoyed him. He’d much prefer metal, but that wouldn’t appeal to Junior’s patrons. Speaking of, he walked up to the bar and greeted the man himself.

“Hey, Junior! Good to see you, and the place is looking good. Heard you had something for me?” He said, getting to the point quickly.

“We’ll talk in my office. In the meantime, can I get you something to drink?” Junior asked.

“I don’t drink on the job, I’m good.”

“Suit yourself.” Junior started leading Onyx through the door behind the bar and up to his private office. On the way through the hall, they passed a few thugs doing menial tasks, one of which was unplugging a thoroughly clogged toilet. The man was muttering various threats, one of which was to “shove that burrito back where it came from”. When they arrived at Junior’s office, he opened the door and they walked in. For a man of Junior’s status, he was surprised by how little there was. Oh sure, there was stuff lining the walls, embroidered shields, a painting or two, that kind of stuff. But not nearly as much as he was expecting. Junior sat at his desk at the back of the room, a large window behind him, and motioned for Onyx to sit in the chair in front of him. He sat down and they started talking.

“I’m surprised you wanted to meet me personally. Usually you get one of the Malachites to do all the talking.” Onyx started, looking around the room a bit before refocusing on Junior. “So, what’s the big occasion?”

Junior set his drink on the desk. “There’s this girl that keeps causing trouble for me and my men. She’s come here twice, both times demanding information I didn’t have, then completely trashing the place like a child when I told her so.” He started to get more frustrated the more he talked about it. “She’s cost me thousands of dollars in damages and bribes along with more than a few regulars.”

“Alright, what details can you give me, Mr. Info Broker? Age, profession, name, family, etcetera.” Onyx started leaning forward in his chair. “I’m assuming she’s a “high and mighty” Huntress who was looking for a criminal?”

“The second time, yes. She was looking for info on Roman and the White Fang.”

Onyx raised an eyebrow at that. “That's a weird combo. Are they working together or something? I thought he hated Faunus?” Junior gave him a look, which frustrated Onyx. “Yeah yeah, ‘not part of the job’ and all. What about the first time she came here?”

“Ah, she showed me a picture of some woman I’d never seen before and ordered me to give her everything I had on the broad. Had me, literally, by the balls.”

Onyx whistled. “That’s fucked. Do you have the picture of this mystery lady?”

Junior scoffed. “Of course I do.” He took out his Scroll and brought up the picture. “Here.” He said, handing the device to Onyx. As soon as he looked at the picture, his eyes went wide.

“No fucking way.” He said with a shocked smile.

“What? You recognize her?”

“Oh you bet your ass I know her.” Onyx was getting more excited. “That’s Raven Branwen, head of a bandit tribe that wanders the Emerald Forest.”

Now it was Junior’s turn to raise a brow. “Really now? How do you know her?”

“I was her personal enforcer and bodyguard for a few years. She payed pretty well, but I left when I got sick of all the travelling.” He chuckled at the memory. “I can only imagine her face when I disappeared in the middle of the night. I swear, the entire time I was sneaking away, I was expecting her to jump out at me at any moment.” He shook his head and set the Scroll on the desk. “Bah, we’re off topic. Anything else you can tell me about the target?”

Junior picked his Scroll back up and pocketed it. “She’s a student up at Beacon, and yes, I know about your policy when it comes to kids, so I’m prepared to pay you double. I was able to get my hands on her student profile, and it’s got all the information you could want.” He reached into his desk and retrieved a paper folder with the target’s name, age, grade, and even a picture on the front. As Onyx went to grab it, Junior pulled it back, hesitantly.

“Don’t tell anyone that I have this. If the Headmaster up there found out I had a contact in the school, bribe or no bribe, I’ll get hunted down like a dog.” He warned before handing it to the hitman.

“Don't worry, pumpkin.” Onyx said as he tucked the file into his suit and stood. “My lips might as well be covered in super glue.” 

Before he could leave, Junior called out to him. “One last thing. Don’t kill her. Just capture her and hold her somewhere secure till my boys can bring her here.”

“You got it, chief.” Onyx gave him a two-fingered salute as he left. While walking down the hall, he took out his Scroll and put it to his ear.

“You get all that?” He asked Mason on the other end.

_ “Slightly muffled, but yeah, I got it. A kidnapping, huh? That’s strange.”  _ Mason responded. It sounded like he was doing something in the background, probably looking for ways to get Onyx to Beacon.

“It ain’t like I haven't done them before, they're just rare.” Onyx had gotten back to the dancefloor by this point and had to shout a bit for Mason to hear him.

_ “Right, right. Anyway, how the hell do you expect to get to her? The only way other than going to Beacon yourself is waiting for her to come down and nab her then. But that’s risky as she’ll be most likely with her team.” _

“Don’t worry, I have an idea. I’ll go over it with you when I get back to the apartment.”

_ “Alright, see you then.”  _ There was a click and the line went dead.

“But first.” He got into his car and started the engine. “I’m getting some fucking beer.” He drove off, hoping there was a liquor store open nearby.


End file.
